Control

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D and AMD Radeon RX 9060 combination ranks 1632nd out of 2888 tested combos in Control. This places the system in the lower-middle portion of the database, indicating that while the hardware is far from obsolete, it does not deliver the top-tier frame rates that the most powerful configurations achieve. The percentile ranking for the CPU alone is 91st among all processors, yet the combo’s overall position is dragged down by the GPU, which sits at the 59th percentile. This disparity is the defining characteristic of the pairing: an exceptionally strong processor yoked to a mid-range graphics card. Consequently, the benchmark results are consistently constrained by the graphics subsystem, particularly at higher resolutions where the GPU’s workload intensifies.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1632 out of 2888 places it in the 56.5th percentile of all tested configurations, a middling result that reflects the bottleneck created by the graphics card. The CPU’s standalone performance is elite, with an average benchmark score of 54762, placing it just 0.6% behind the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF and 1.3% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245K. This processor is clearly capable of feeding any GPU on the market, but the RX 9060’s average score of 16014 is only 0.7% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti and 1% above the AMD Radeon RX 7700. The delta between the CPU’s near-top-tier standing and the GPU’s mid-pack position means the combo rank is essentially a reflection of the graphics card’s capabilities. In Control, a title known for its physics-heavy combat and particle effects, the results show that the system is adequate for smooth play at lower settings, but it falls short of the high-refresh-rate experience that the CPU alone could support.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with a Navi 44 chip, featuring 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1700 MHz, a game clock of 2400 MHz, and a boost clock of 2990 MHz, with memory running at 2250 MHz. The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s, which is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming but becomes a limiting factor at 4K. In Control, which uses detailed textures and complex lighting, the 8 GB VRAM capacity is adequate for the measured settings, as none of the benchmark rows show signs of texture swapping or stutter that would indicate memory exhaustion. The GPU’s pixel rate of 191.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 334.9 GTexel/s are moderate figures, and the FP32 performance of 21.43 TFLOPS places it in the same performance tier as the RTX 3060 Ti. The direct relationship between the GPU’s specs and the game’s results is evident in the scaling: as resolution increases, the frame rate drops proportionally, confirming that the RX 9060 is the primary determinant of performance in this combo.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling across resolutions. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 130 FPS, which drops to 98 FPS at 1440p and further to 66 FPS at 4K. This represents a 24.6% decrease from 1080p to 1440p and a 49.2% decrease from 1080p to 4K. The scaling is consistent across all settings: at High settings, the frame rate goes from 82 FPS at 1080p to 62 FPS at 1440p (a 24.4% drop) and then to 42 FPS at 4K (a 48.8% drop from 1080p). This near-linear scaling with pixel count indicates that the GPU is the limiting component, as the CPU’s massive 12-core, 24-thread configuration with a 128 MB L3 cache is more than capable of maintaining frame pacing even at lower resolutions. The fact that the frame rate halves when the pixel count quadruples suggests that the RX 9060’s memory bandwidth and compute resources are the bottlenecks, not the processor. At 1080p, the CPU can push the GPU to its limits, but at 4K, the GPU’s raw throughput is insufficient to maintain high frame rates, regardless of the CPU’s headroom.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers playable frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 130 FPS, which is exceptionally smooth for fast-paced action. Medium settings yield 92 FPS with a minimum of 78 FPS and a maximum of 106 FPS, indicating stable performance with only minor dips. High settings average 82 FPS, still well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Ultra settings drop to 71 FPS, which remains acceptable for most players, though the lack of a reported minimum suggests possible variability. The 1080p results show a 45.1% reduction from Low to Ultra, demonstrating that the GPU has enough headroom at this resolution to handle even the most demanding preset.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease noticeably. Low settings average 98 FPS, which is still excellent, but the drop from 1080p Low is 24.6%. Medium settings average 70 FPS with a minimum of 59 FPS and a maximum of 80 FPS, placing the system right at the edge of the 60 FPS comfort zone. High settings average 62 FPS, which is playable but leaves little margin for demanding scenes. Ultra settings drop to 54 FPS, which falls below the 60 FPS target and may result in noticeable stuttering during intense combat sequences. The 1440p results show a 44.9% reduction from Low to Ultra, similar to the 1080p scaling, but the absolute values are lower, making the Ultra preset less viable at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the GPU’s limitations become pronounced. Low settings average 66 FPS, which is surprisingly playable, but Medium settings drop to 47 FPS with a minimum of 40 FPS and a maximum of 54 FPS. High settings average 42 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 36 FPS. The 4K results show a 45.5% reduction from Low to Ultra, consistent with the other resolutions, but the absolute frame rates are below the 60 FPS threshold for all settings except Low. The minimum FPS of 40 at Medium settings indicates that even the mid-range preset can experience significant dips during heavy load, making 4K gaming a marginal experience for this combo.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo depends on the target resolution. At 1080p, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance, with an average of 92 FPS and a minimum of 78 FPS that ensures smooth gameplay without the sharpness loss of Low settings. The High preset at 82 FPS is also viable for players who prioritize visual fidelity, but the jump to Ultra at 71 FPS provides diminishing returns for the performance cost. At 1440p, the Medium preset is the recommended choice, as the 70 FPS average with a 59 FPS minimum keeps the experience close to the 60 FPS target. The High preset at 62 FPS is acceptable, but the Ultra preset at 54 FPS should be avoided due to the sub-60 FPS average. At 4K, the Low preset at 66 FPS is the only setting that provides a smooth experience, while Medium at 47 FPS and High at 42 FPS are playable but require a tolerance for lower frame rates. The Ultra preset at 36 FPS is not recommended for any gameplay scenario, as the frame rate is too low for the action-oriented nature of Control. For players with high-refresh-rate monitors, 1080p Low at 130 FPS or 1080p Medium at 92 FPS are the best options, while those with 1440p displays should stick to Medium to maintain a competitive frame rate.

FAQ

*Q: Is this combo capable of running Control at 4K?*

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, where it achieves an average of 66 FPS. Medium settings drop to 47 FPS, High to 42 FPS, and Ultra to 36 FPS, all of which are below the ideal 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the RX 9060 compare to its nearest rival in terms of raw performance?

A: The RX 9060 has an average benchmark score of 16014, which is 0.7% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti and 1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 7700. This places it in a tightly contested mid-range segment.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1440p gaming?

A: The Medium preset is the best choice, with an average of 70 FPS and a minimum of 59 FPS, ensuring that the frame rate stays close to the 60 FPS target. The High preset at 62 FPS is acceptable, but Ultra at 54 FPS falls below the threshold.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at any resolution?

A: The data suggests no. The Ryzen 9 9900X3D has an average benchmark score of 54762, and the frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K is consistent with GPU-bound performance, indicating that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this title.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, Low settings produce 130 FPS, while Ultra settings produce 71 FPS, representing a 45.1% reduction in average frame rate when moving to the highest preset.

*Q: Is the 8 GB VRAM sufficient for Control at the measured settings?*

A: Yes, the benchmark results show no indication of VRAM-related stuttering or texture pop-in, even at 4K Ultra, which suggests that the 8 GB GDDR6 memory is adequate for this game’s requirements.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge), manufactured on a 4 nm process by TSMC. It operates at a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz, with a TDP of 120 W. The CPU features a large 128 MB L3 cache, which is beneficial for gaming workloads that rely on data locality. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 47737 and a single-core score of 6739, placing it in the top tier of processors. The Geekbench multicore score of 22884 and single-core score of 3041 further confirm its dominance. However, in Control, the CPU’s role is secondary to the GPU, as the game’s rendering pipeline is heavily graphics-dependent. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 130 FPS, which is likely near the GPU’s maximum output, rather than a CPU limitation. The near-linear scaling of frame rates with resolution is a classic sign of a GPU bottleneck, indicating that the Ryzen 9 9900X3D has ample headroom to feed the RX 9060 at all settings. The CPU’s 91st percentile ranking among all processors means that it is not the constraint in this pairing, and upgrading the GPU would yield significant performance gains without requiring a processor change. In this sense, the CPU is a future-proofing asset, ensuring that the system can accommodate a more powerful graphics card when the user chooses to upgrade.